Month: June 2013

When my English class studies the parts of a book I do a little experiment. I grab a couple of tomes from my shelves that they may not be used to and ask them to tell me what the book is about by just examining it. There is one book that always gets them—Eats, Shoots and Leaves by Lynne Truss. This book’s cover depicts an adorable panda adjusting the title and then walking away with a firearm thus explaining the importance of the Oxford comma which is used to separate items in a series of items or actions to let the reader know they are indeed separate items.

“It’s about a panda and he has this gun,” I was told.

“But what is it about?” I got a few blank looks from this group. Maybe I’ve spent too much time in English classes or with other English teachers, but grammar humor does make me chuckle. Many of my “teachery” friends enjoy posting little quips of grammar humor on Facebook or other blogs, but recently I’ve noticed the growing popularity of grammar humor shirts. Yes, you can get a shirt with a dinosaur that proclaims it is a Thesaurus Rex. It has a little book in its tiny T-Rex arms.

So if you’re like me, an English teacher or just a grammar nerd, maybe you can make up some fun shirts for your class or even your book club. With Rush Order Tee’s Design Studio you can easily make the perfect punctuation pullover. I took the liberty to design a few shirts and hope the give you a little grammar giggle.

“But it’s all gristle,” says John Candy to the pirate-bearded chef in the 80’s comedy, The Great Outdoors. In thisclassic cinematic food challenge, Candy is forced to eat the Old 96’er—a 96 ounce steak in order to win a free dinner and a few free hats. These days, most food challenge winners are awarded the classic winner T-shirt prize. You mean people can eat abnormally large amounts of food for a free t-shirt? Yup. These “little” challenges are scattered throughout the United States and between 2008 and 2010, The Travel Channel’s Man vs. Food has highlighted a ton of these diners, dives, and…oops wrong gluttonous food show…um, while while popularizing the idea of overeating—but only if a t-shirt or a Polaroid on the wall is involved.

From the grease trucks of North Jersey to a 12-egg omelet in Washington State, people love eating and cheering on people who eat even more. If you own a restaurant and fit the bill, perhaps you can boost business or get a little PR out of the deal by developing a crazy food challenge. Think about what your joint is known for and then just make it bigger. Are you a bar with great wings? Make the hotter by adding some ghost chili or soak them in sriracha (aka Rooster Sauce). Do patrons love your burgers? Then put about a half of dozen on top of each other with nothing but gooey cheese holding them together. Have you got a killer burrito? Use about three or four tortillas and stuff everything in your kitchen inside—roll, grill, serve, and watch the chaos ensue.

Now that you’ve got you challenge, what are you going to give the winner? A T-shirt is traditional, but this shirt has got to really has to be a fitting prize for the challenge. Try to avoid “I ate a ton of food and all I got was this shirt.” Make it fun, stylish, and Rush Order Tees can help you print up a batch for your winners pretty easily. You’re the food expert; we’re the shirt guys (and gals).

Logo design can be a daunting task. A lot of promotional printing companies have some great templates that you can easily upload, but do you really want your company using a pre-designed template? You want to stand out—be bold, be yourself, and be represented by a design that is as unique as your business. Whether you are looking for promotional t-shirts or employee uniforms, your logo may be showing up on more than just your front door, so here are a few tips on how to create a great logo which will lead to a great piece of customized apparel.

Research shows there are five considerations to take when designing your new logo. First, keep your design simple. This is key for artistic and logistic reasons. Artistically, if your logo is too complex then your audience may not get it. A logo is a quick image that needs to relay nearly everything about the company. Why are most billboards so simple? Because they have to relay their message in the thirty seconds it takes for someone to drive by. Your logo needs to do the same. Logistically, you will need to print it over and over again. Consider picking a design that looks good in color and black and white.

You know the “swoosh” and the apple, right? Customers connect the quality of a product with their logo. So you need to make your logo something recognizable and more importantly, memorable. What does your logo represent and will people connect that little graphic with your company?

If you want to make a memorable logo, you need to design something that will last; otherwise it won’t be around long enough to become memorable. Try to make your design modern, but don’t isolate it in a time capsule. You want it to fit today’s style, but not be too trendy.

As your company grows you may need to change up your look. It may be to put it on various personalized apparel or promotional items. Another reason to have a versatile design is to maintain your timelessness or memorability. The infamous Apple logo has had many variations, but we still recognize the design and associate it with computers.

This seems like common sense, but your logo should be appropriate—for your market, demographic, or target audience. Find what designs or colors appeal to your target and employ that into your design strategy. You don’t want to use Times New Roman when your audience is nine-year-old kids.

Whether you have your own design or need a little assistance, Rush Order Tees are able to assist you throughout the order process. Let our design team help enhance your existing logo or build a brand new image for your business.